What this week has in store is anyone’s guess.
Happy reading, and happy major week.
It might even come very soon.
But its not today.
I was actually encouraged by what I saw at Valhalla.
I know, I know, he missed the cut by a gazillion.
But he looked physically stronger than he has in any tournament since the accident.
Qualified for this event through the sectional in California and comes in off a top-five finish at LIV Houston.
Hell get a PGA Tour card the moment he turns pro.
Might be the longest player in the field.
As such, hes had to swallow his pride and head back to the Korn Ferry Tour to grind.
And grind he haswon back-to-back weeks, both in playoffs, to guarantee a return to the PGA Tour.
Needed extra holes in his Final Qualifier to book his spot in his first U.S. Open.
Hes into the Open and next years Masters, too, so it should reach 94 without incident.
Tour players play golf, he said recently.
They dont tell us how to hit 7-irons.
We shouldnt be telling them how to run a business.
Lone major came 15 years ago at Bethpage Black.
With each successive year the world-beating ways of the mid-to-late 2010s feel more and more like a distant memory.
Now down to No.
2 will allow him to tap into his creative side.
Thats when hes at his best.
His best-ever U.S. Open finish came the last time Pinehurst No.
2 hosted the event a decade ago.
Hes got just two top-10s on the year and zero in majors or signature events.
4 in the Official World Golf Ranking even with all the shortcomings of that system.
Those high-profile flops help explain the huge delta between his OWGR ranking and his Data Golf ranking.
At least not right now.
Coming off his best showing of the year with a solo fourth at Memorial.
Hell want that especially badly after missing the cut in the RBC Canadian Open a few weeks ago.
A solo third at Memorial, then, was just what the doctor ordered.
A solid T23 at Pinehurst No.
Won at Trump Doral this season and has been T15 or better in his last four LIV events.
Opens for one of the grittier players on tour.
Thats part of the equation at U.S.
Unfortunate, then, that he missed the cut at the Memorial in his last tournament of prep.
Was T12 at No.
Hasnt played a U.S. Open since missing the cut at Winged Foot in 2020.
Hes having a career resurgence after briefly losing his PGA Tour card with four top-four finishes on the season.
Opens, and top 25s in both majors thus far this year.
Made the cut at No.
2 in 2014 in what was his first U.S. Open appearance.
His worst finish in seven LIV events is a T21 so hes racking up the dollars.
Also posted his best-ever Masters finish with a T9 and made the cut in 10 straight major championships.
Lack of advanced statistics on the LIV Golf circuit make any further analysis pretty difficult.
2 to fall back on.
(He has flies to each tournament and pays for someone to meet him there with the trailer).
The trailer was parked directly outside his home.
Last four finishes have all been between T22 and T26.
Virtually everyone in the game thinks hes got the horsepower to win majors in the future.
When hes on hes as accurate as they get and thats translated into two top-six finishes at U.S.
Missed the cut in his first start of the year but not a single one since.
I do feel obligated to note that he shot 85 at Muirfield Village on Sunday.
Opens hes played in.
For the season he trails only Scottie Scheffler in strokes gained:approach.
Ball striking has been excellent in recent weeks.
1 while Rahm doesnt get many chances to compete against him or Rory or Viktor or the rest.
Adding injury to insult, he withdrew from LIV Houston last week with an apparent foot injury.
An impressive 10th on the PGA Tour in strokes gained overall this season.
Cameron SmithAge: 30Data Golf Ranking: 37Best U.S. Open finish: 4, 2023
Was the world No.
2 when he joined LIV Golf and hes won three times on the breakaway circuit.
Two solo seconds in signature events have him flying high in the FedEx Cup.
Told me last week that the round he played on No.
2 in the 2019 U.S.
Amateur was the most difficult round of golf hed ever playedhe shot +2 and rocketed up the leaderboard.
When its firm and you have to control your ball, hes fine.
Im expecting it to be extremely firm at Pinehurst, so this is a good week for him.
One of the better chippers/bunker players out there which should also be a help this week.
Been hard at work with instructor Mark Blackburn after a few poor off-the-tee weeks in a row.
The next step in his career progression is to win one of these.
Much easier said than done, obviously.
That should be the case at Pinehurst.
He was the only amateur to make the cut at the 2014 U.S. Open on No.
Returned to action at the Memorial and looked solid through two rounds.
Doubt him at your own peril.
Lost in the round of 32 at Pinehurst No.
2 in the 2019 U.S. Yeah, thatll get it done.
Opens and he now has the swagger that comes with winning a major.
The proverbial floodgates just mightve opened in Kentucky.
Never short on confidence, hes gone T4/T5/T14 in the last three U.S.
I love his chances…if it werent for that Scottie guy.
Starting to feel like an over-aggressive police officer mightve derailed a legitimate bid for the calendar year Grand Slam.
That sounds ridiculous at first glance but are you betting against this guy, in this form?
He has total and complete control of both his clubface and his emotions, which is a frightening combo.
Its him, and then its everyone else.
